Sony Group Inc. deepened its involvement in the Soneium blockchain with an additional investment in Startale Group approximately one year after the network’s mainnet launch.
In an announcement sent to Cointelegraph on Thursday, Startail revealed an additional $13 million investment from the Sony Innovation Fund. This funding round comes after Soneium moved from testnet experiments to actual production, allowing Sony to observe how the network performs under real-world conditions.
Data from Soneium’s public block explorer shows that the network has processed approximately 524 million transactions since its mainnet launch in January 2025. During the same period, Nansen data shows Avalanche and Algorand recorded 442 million and 383 million transactions, respectively. The number of transactions alone does not indicate user penetration or economic activity.
This new investment increases Sony’s exposure as it observes post-launch network activity while maintaining its long-term approach to blockchain strategy.
Investment decisions are influenced by post-launch performance
A Startale spokesperson told Cointelegraph that Sony’s decision was informed by Soneium’s post-launch performance. This includes transaction milestones and the number of wallets reaching 5.4 million.
“The growth of this ecosystem, combined with the continued strength of collaboration through Sony Block Solutions Labs, reflects the progress that supports Sony’s continued investments,” a spokesperson told Cointelegraph.
A spokesperson said the investment will not change Sony’s operational or governance role, nor will the structure of the partnership.
Startale also stated that the Startale USD (USDSC) stablecoin is live on Soneium’s mainnet. The token is built on M0’s platform and is designed to act as a native payments layer across applications and payments on the network.
Startail declined to disclose valuation details for subsequent rounds, describing the investment as its first Series A completion.
Related: Crypto payments coming to PlayStation as Sony plans to introduce stablecoin in 2026
From testnet experiments to live infrastructure
Sony and Startale first announced Soneium in August 2024 as Ethereum Layer 2 designed to attract developers across entertainment, gaming, and consumer applications. On August 23, 2024, the project was positioned as Sony’s most direct commitment to blockchain infrastructure.
This effort was expanded a few days later with the launch of the Mito public testnet and Soneium Spark developer incubator. On August 28, 2024, the incubator provided funding and support from Sony subsidiaries and Web3 partners, demonstrating a pragmatic approach rather than a passive investment.
Soneium’s mainnet went live in January 2025 and integrated non-fungible token (NFT)-based fan engagement tools associated with Sony’s entertainment business. The launch sparked mixed reactions on January 14, 2025, after the network restricted certain contracts due to alleged intellectual property (IP) infringement.
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